Homeopathy is a popular but widely misunderstood form of alternative "medicine" based on pseudo-scientific principles. Homeopathic "remedies" are allegedly made by diluting questionable remedies with extraordinary amounts of water - often until there is only a slight chance of one molecule of active ingredient in the final treatment.

Extraordinary claims are causing consumers to forego traditional medical treatment, with estimates of Americans spending >$3B per year on this pseudoscience.

from Mother JonesIn the Bay Area, we've had a lot of fussing about the PG&E Smartmeters that have been installed over the last few years. Much of the opposition comes from a familiar fear about radiation effect. In an article posted today, the magazine Mother Jones attempts to assuage concerns on this as well as some other accounts. A nice graph appears here: http://motherjones.com/blue-marble/2011/01/will-smart-meters-give-you-ca... Skeptics know that the amount and type

Today a colleague of mine at work brought in a curious black elastic wrist band with two embedded holographic disks in it. A "Power Balance" wrist band, which he found on a path in a park. Such a device, according to testimonials, improves one's athletic performance (balance, stamina, strength, energy, etc) by "optimizing the body's natural energy flow" because it "resonates with and responds to the natural energy field of the body".PowerBalance bracelet

What if your club, institution, or company had access to a lot of the Science-interested public for a few days? What if they come to you, or meet you in a nice venue? What messages would you most want to get across? What could those contacts be best used for? What if you had 10 months to prepare?

Around San Francisco, the Bay Area Science Festival is planned for October 29 - November 6, 2011. But hardly anyone I talk to has heard about it yet!

From sfgate.com: A New Living Expo treatment San Francisco Chronicle reporter Steve Rubenstein gets the tone perfectly right in his review of the New Living Expo taking place in San Francisco this week.

SkepTalk: Berkeley

If we build homeless housing, won't that just attract more homeless people? I read an article about this cool thing they're doing in Utah, why don't we do that? And what about tiny homes?

Significant research has been done on the causes of and solutions to homelessness, but public knowledge is based more on anecdotes and personal observation than on the social science. This talk will look at some of the most common misconceptions and provide a nuanced, evidence-based response on one of the country's most pressing issues.

WHO: Carrie Ellen Sager, J.D. is Senior Homelessness Program Coordinator for the county of Marin, where she works with local nonprofits and city and county governments to create a coordinated system of care to house the most vulnerable people experiencing homelessness. Prior to working in Marin, Carrie worked for HomeBase, a nonprofit law firm that works with cities and counties to implement responses to homelessness. She has a J.D. from American University Washington College of Law.